Hey fam
So we had a good week this week. A family we have been meeting with started showing some progress. They are a part member family. Irena ,the mom, is a member and so is her son Valdas. Her husband, Valentinas, is not a member. They are in some really tough times right now. They live in a Bendrabutis (a community housing apartment) So everybody on a floor shares a bathroom and a kitchen. They just live in a little 10 by 10 room. They are way nice people though. We cooked them dinner one night becasue the only thing they had money to buy that day was sour cream. They next day we "broke the fast" with the branch and so we invited them to that and they had food to eat for another day. We talked to the branch president and the branch gave them some money for this week. The wonderful part is that Valentinas came to church this week! He hasn't been for a very very long time. We are way excited for him. It's great because Irena wants to get sealed in the temple really bad. I hope he comes around.
Other than that not a lot is going on with other investigators. We haven't met with the gypsys for a while. Zone conference was this last week and it rocked as usual.
Thanks for the package!
Also thank Liz for me. She sent me a way funny package for my birthday and it arrived to the day so that was a score.
Oh I almost forgot. We met with some members from Vilnius yesterday and they taught us how to cook Bulves Blynai (potato pancakes)
p.s. it just took me forever to remember how to spell potato. They were way good. They put me over 155 pounds for the first time in my life. That means i have put on about 20 pounds since i have been here. Which is weird because you can't tell i don't think. Its wierd.

Well fam Thanks for everything now for my testimony:
Tikrai zinau kad dievas dar gyvas. Jis yra mano asmaninis Dankiskasis Tevas. Ir zinokit kad Kristus vaikciuoja su manim cia Siauliuose ir tiesog jis visada vaikciuoja su visais savo vaikais. As esu labai dekingas jam uz viska jis dare del manes. Aciu uz tavo pagalba ir zinokit kad As su visa savo sirdimi jus myliu. Laikykites

Vyresnysis Kukas

From your (20 yr old) missionary son

Hey Fam.
Well I had a wonderful birthday. The Branch threw a big party and we had a lot of fun. I had to pop 20 balloons and in each one was a piece of paper that told me something to do. I had to tell a story or recite a scripture or do whatever was on the piece of paper. It was way fun and I got a good language study out of it. In the last one was I had to bear my testimony to everyone. It was just an all around fun experience. After that we had "toasts" from everyone where I was wished anything from "lots of miracles" to "lots of wives". Then we had saslykai (sha shlee kay) It was so so good. It was just a fun day. Then I got to street contact that night. It was the best birthday ever.
We have Zone conference this week so Im excited for that.
I love you all and sorry if I don't write to others who email me, I am trying my best we just never have time. Thanks for all your love and support. Your all in my prayers.

Elder Cooke

P.S. who the heck ISNT married over there now!

Hey

Hey fam,
This has been a fun week. We went to Rumshishkes. Its the celebration of the opening of missionary work in Lithuania. It was so nice to see the members from Vilnius and Klaipeda again. I love them all so much.
As a district we have been trying to pick up the work here. Its been a little slow going here. Last week we got about 5 lessons all week. But that just made me that much more determined for this week. The branch is throwing me a birthday party on Sunday night where we are going to cook Shashleekai. (its like shish ka bobs) I am way excited.
Right now we are meeting with a Gypsy couple. They are really interesting people. They are way nice though. I don't excactly know how interested they are in the church but they seem really accepting.
Thanks for the money I think I might buy an umbrella becasue I dont have one or a rain jacket. I have been doing really well thus far but it rains a ton. I have just been dealing with it because I can't bring myself to spend money on something lame like that. On a totaly unrelated note I think I am getting sick. Other than that I am doing just peachy. I have gotten some leters from my friends and they really cheered me up. Its been so frustrating for me lately but I have been doing my best to just forget it and get to work. Sometimes we put so much focus on little things that we forget the big picture. Yea this language is hard, yea the Lithuanian people are not always the happiest most "open minded" people, but if I am mad becasue I want to speak better so I let that stop me from talking to ONE person doesn't that defeat the pourpose of everything. We learn to speak so we can talk to people. So how silly is it if I don't talk to somebody becasue I am frustrated that I can't talk to people. It is just one of the many ways we are tricked by the advasary. The SECOND we begin to think about ourselves the work stops. It has been hard for me to learn this because I am just strait up imperfect. The mission is really good at pointing that out for you. And honestly I hope I don't ever forget how imperfect I really am.
Well fam this is the last time you will hear from me as a immature teenagaer. Next time I will be an immature 20 YEAR OLD! cool right?

ok fam Love you all

Elder Cooke

The City of Dreams

Well...I didn't see it coming but I got transfered. I am now in a city called Saulai (Show-Lay) It is the smallest of all the cities open to missionaries here in Lithuania.
I am serving with Elder Fitzgerald. He is absolutly awesome. He was my district leader in Vilnius and I absolutely love him. He is from an island in Alaska. His family are all crazy fishermen. I totally have a hookup in Alaska now! But (more importantly) he is an awesome missionary.

Couple of interesting things.

1. We are being "whitewashed" (my second time and his sixth time) So neither of us have been in this city before and have no idea about anything. The least amount of Elders come here so not very many Elders know much about this city right now in the mission.

2. Two sister's just went home from our mission. So that means we only have six in Lithuania. That also means they just took sisters out of Saulai. Right now my district is my companionship and one other companionship of Elders. (Elder Mcnevin and Elder Neilson, both awesome) Elder Mcnevin is the first councilor and Elder Neilson is the District leader.

Saulai is an interesting place. I was way sad to leave Klaipeda and her members but I know this is where i am meant to be right now. It was even harder because the night before I found out I was leaving our investigator Robertas accepted the commitment to babtisim. Missionaries have been trying for a while and he is finally ready to make that commitment. I am so happy for him. He came to see me before I left. He is one of the most amazing men I have ever met. I dont know if I accomplished anything in Klaipeda but if it was all just to help him, then it was worth it.
Its going to be tough work here especialy considering we are starting from absolute zero as far as investigators go. I am way excited to get to work here. It is going to be a language push because the people here speak a bit different here. They speak VERY fast with a ton of energy. In the other cities they refered to it as sauletiskai, which basicly means its thier own little dialect. The branch here experienced some shock last week with some member drama and that seems to be a regular occurance. Everybody says here that missionarys either go to Saulai because they have charity or becasue they need to learn it. I just go where I am told and work so I guess we will figure out later if I have charity or not. In the meantime I am just going to put my sholder to that good ol' wheel here in "The City of Dreams" or "The City of the Son"
But We have a lot to do today so I wont get a chance to write other people who wrote me. I will try next week. I love you all

Vyresnysis Kukas


ps: here is my adress

Vyresnysis Kukas
A/d 56
Lt-76001 Saulai
Lithuania


I used a little $ to buy a nice Book of Mormon for Robertas.
If you do ever send me something dont forget the history of the Catholic church, the Russian Orthodox and the Jahovas Witness. The Jahovas witnesses have thier center for the Baltics here in Saulai and their massive church is 20 feet away from our church here.

Love you